Skip to content

Top Navigation

Shape Shape
  • Fitness
  • Health and Wellness
  • Food & Nutrition
  • Fashion and Beauty
  • Lifestyle
  • News and Trends
  • About SHAPE

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Pin FB

Explore Shape

Shape Shape
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Best Inner-Thigh Exercises of All Time

      The Best Inner-Thigh Exercises of All Time

      16 trainer approved thigh exercises Read More
    • Why You're Gaining Weight While Working Out and Eating Well

      Why You're Gaining Weight While Working Out and Eating Well

      Gaining weight while working out is totally normal. Here's what you need to know about that number on the scale post-sweat sesh. Read More
    • Ultimate Guide to Strength Training for Beginners

      Ultimate Guide to Strength Training for Beginners

      This total-body beginner weight lifting routine is the easiest way to ease into strength training as a newbie. Read More
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See All Fitness
    Here's What a Perfectly Balanced Weekly Workout Schedule Looks Like

    Here's What a Perfectly Balanced Weekly Workout Schedule Looks Like

    Follow this expert-backed gym regimen to give your results a major boost.
    • Workouts
    • Cardio
    • Strength Training
    • Bodyweight Training
    • Yoga
    • Exercise Recovery
    • Low Impact
    • Race Training
    • Workout Trends
    • Motivation
  • Health and Wellness

    Health and Wellness

    See All Health and Wellness
    The Best Foods for Hair Growth, According to Dietitians

    The Best Foods for Hair Growth, According to Dietitians

    While your diet is only one factor to determine how fast your hair grows, there are certain foods that experts say can speed up the process. Learn how to support your stands from the inside out.
    • Sleep
    • Sleep
    • Mental Health
    • Healthy IRL
  • Food & Nutrition

    Food & Nutrition

    See All Food & Nutrition
    Is It Better to Drink a Protein Shake Before or After a Workout?

    Is It Better to Drink a Protein Shake Before or After a Workout?

    Protein is essential for building bigger and stronger muscles, but the timing of your intake depends on your own nutritional needs.
    • Meal Ideas
    • Low Calorie Diet
    • Healthy Snacks
    • Diets
    • Healthy Breakfast
    • Vegetarian, Vegan, and Plant Based Diets
  • Fashion and Beauty

    Fashion and Beauty

    What Happens When You Stop Wearing a Bra?

    What Happens When You Stop Wearing a Bra?

    There's nothing quite like taking your bra off at the end of the day, but does not wearing a bra altogether cause sagging? Here's what the experts have to say.
    • Fashion
    • Beauty
    • Apparel and Gear
    • Skin Care
    • Workout Clothes
    • Beauty Files
    • Workout Gear
    • Body Care
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    See All Lifestyle
    The Complete Guide to Zodiac Signs and Their Meanings

    The Complete Guide to Zodiac Signs and Their Meanings

    From fiery, competitive Aries to empathic, psychic Pisces, here's your complete guide to all 12 zodiac signs dates and their meanings.
    • Astrology
    • Relationships
    • Travel and Retreats
  • News and Trends

    News and Trends

    See All News and Trends
    • Celebrity News
    • Celebrity Workouts
  • About SHAPE

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Your Profile
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Log Out
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Shape.com
  2. Health and Wellness
  3. How to Increase Your Metabolism By Boosting Your Mood

How to Increase Your Metabolism By Boosting Your Mood

By Mirel Ketchiff June 09, 2017
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet
How to Increase Your Metabolism By Boosting Your Mood
These two seemingly disparate things are connected in surprising ways, new science reveals.
Start Slideshow

1 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Good Mood, Better Metabolism

Good Mood, Better Metabolism
Credit: Shutterstock

A fast metabolism, a happy outlook—these are two things we can all agree are worth chasing. And now, scientists are realizing that going after one may naturally deliver both.

What we know for sure: The key to this connection is the hunger hormone leptin, which tells your brain that you feel full. "Leptin impacts not only your food intake but your mood as well," says Paul Burghardt, Ph.D., an assistant professor of nutrition and food science at Wayne State University in Detroit. This is partly because of the hormone's relationship with dopamine, a neurotransmitter that controls happiness and motivation. Generally, when leptin levels dip, the release of dopamine increases, says Stephanie Fulton, Ph.D., an associate professor of nutrition at the University of Montreal. That's when mood starts to rise.

The following five strategies will help deliver a happy mind-body balance.

1 of 6

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Exercise Early

Exercise Early
Credit: Shutterstock

Working out, especially running and cycling, causes your leptin levels to fall, triggering a surge of dopamine, Fulton says. "When leptin declines, it sends a signal to your body that you need to eat. That stimulates dopamine production, which in turn increases your motivation to exercise longer," Fulton explains. This response is a holdover from prehistoric times. Back then, our drive and outlook were boosted whenever hunger kicked in to set us up for success in finding food. To take full advantage of this effect, hit the road or the gym in the morning, before breakfast. Since you haven't eaten for hours, your leptin levels will already be low, and you'll be able to go longer, which may rev your metabolism even more. (Here, even more health benefits of morning workouts.)

2 of 6

3 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Pump Up the Iron

Pump Up the Iron
Credit: Shutterstock

If you're deficient in this mineral, you'll be less likely to score the perks of the leptin-dopamine response. People with the lowest amounts of iron had 3.2 times higher leptin levels than others, reports the Journal of Clinical Investigation. This could even lead to leptin resistance, which occurs when leptin levels remain too high for too long; the hormone stops affecting your brain, contributing to weight gain and moodiness. Aim for about 18 mg of iron a day. (Plus, exercise and an iron-rich diet might make you smarter too.)

3 of 6

Advertisement

4 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Find Your Funny

Find Your Funny
Credit: Shutterstock

Your body responds to laughter the same way it does to a short bout of moderate exercise, researchers from Loma Linda University in California discovered. They found that people's leptin levels decreased after watching a comedy film. A study from Vanderbilt University found that genuine laughter increases your metabolism by up to 20 percent, and there's plenty of evidence that it makes you happier. The trick is to laugh every day. (P.S. did you know there's such a thing as laugh yoga?)

4 of 6

5 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Sleep Deeper

Sleep Deeper
Credit: Shutterstock

It's no secret that a lack of z's makes you cranky, but losing just two hours of sleep for three days can also cause your metabolism to grind to a halt, according to a 2015 study. Sleep deprivation increases your cravings for junk food, Fulton adds. "It's a cycle. You don't sleep well, so you're more stressed and crave comfort food that's high in saturated fats. This increases inflammation, worsening mood."

It's not just how much you snooze but how restorative those hours are too. Sleep interruptions are worse for your mental state than not logging enough shut-eye, the journal Sleep reports. Invest in blackout curtains and a white-noise machine, and dim the brightness of your phone to tone down the sleep-sapping blue light. (Seriously, your before-bed scrolling habit could be wrecking your metabolism.)

5 of 6

6 of 6

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Eat Better Fats

Eat Better Fats
Credit: Shutterstock

Replacing saturated fat from meat and dairy with polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats in salmon, avocados, and nuts may benefit your metabolism and your mood, research in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience reveals. Saturated fats make you accumulate visceral fat, which slows the metabolism and produces inflammatory molecules that are linked to depression, says Fulton. Visceral fat also cranks out leptin and may increase your odds of leptin resistance. (And another study shows nuts may help boost your mood and aid weight loss.)

6 of 6

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Mirel Ketchiff

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 6 Good Mood, Better Metabolism
    2 of 6 Exercise Early
    3 of 6 Pump Up the Iron
    4 of 6 Find Your Funny
    5 of 6 Sleep Deeper
    6 of 6 Eat Better Fats

    Share & More

    Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Shape

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Affiliate Program this link opens in a new tab
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithShape is part of the Instyle Beauty Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Shape. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.shape.com

    Sign in

    View image

    How to Increase Your Metabolism By Boosting Your Mood
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.